Mersal all set to become the first Tamil film to release in China

Mersal is a revenge drama set in the backdrop of corruption in the country's healthcare system. It follows the efforts of a vigilante to eliminate corrupt medical practitioners and avenge his father's death.

China’s HGC entertainment has bagged the theatrical rights of Tamil superstar Vijay’s 2017 blockbuster Mersal. According to reports, the Chinese company has plans to dub the film in Mandarin and release it by the end of the year or early 2019.

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Mersal is a revenge drama set in the backdrop of corruption in the country’s healthcare system. It follows the efforts of a vigilante to eliminate corrupt medical practitioners and avenge his father’s death. Co-authored by Baahubali creator K V Vijayendra Prasad and helmed by Atlee, the film became one of the highest grossing films of 2017. Vijay played three different roles in the film, which also stars Samantha Akkineni, Kajal Agarwal, Nithya Menen and Sathyaraj among others in important roles.

Since Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan’s Dangal became one of the 20 highest-grossing films of all time in China last year, there has been a massive demand for Indian films. The Chinese distributors seem to be vying for deals with films that promise to leave the audiences misty-eyed. Films like Secret Superstar, Baahubali: The Conclusion and Bajrangi Bhaijaan also clicked with Chinese audience recently.

Mersal, however, is now all to become the first Tamil film to release in China. With more than 45,000 screens, China is expected to become a leading international consumer of Indian films.

Malayalam superstar Mammootty’s upcoming Tamil film Peranbu is also being prepped for theatrical release in China. The producers of the film are also in the process of finding the right distributors and an official announcement on the same is expected soon.

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Directed by National Award-winning filmmaker Ram, Peranbu was screened thrice at the Shanghai International Film Festival earlier this year. The encouraging response from the audience motivated the filmmaker to explore ways for a bigger commercial release.